Players stay close despite distance after bonding at U.Va.

Players stay close despite distance

9:53 PM,
Mar. 6, 2014

Former Virginia guard Billy Baron, left, and current U.Va. guard Joe Harris (not in photo) have not seen each other in person since early in 2011, but they have never lost touch. They talk nearly every day.

Written by

Erik Brady
USA TODAY Sports

Joe Harris and Billy Baron are best friends who hit it off from the moment they met as fresh-faced college freshmen. They had so much in common they just knew they had to be roommates. They were coaches' sons. They were sharp-shooting, good-looking guards. They even shared a dream of taking their school to a historic championship. And then, after just one semester, Baron walked away from the University of Virginia.

Harris and Baron have not seen each other in person since early in 2011, but they have never lost touch. They text nearly every day. They Skype. They study each other's box scores, and ...